


Draconis (Unum Maledictus)

by Egotisticalfloof



Category: Markiplier (RPF), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Human Sacrifice, Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M, Multi, Past Character Death, Self-Sacrifice
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-27
Updated: 2019-03-27
Packaged: 2019-12-25 08:29:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,644
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18257567
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Egotisticalfloof/pseuds/Egotisticalfloof
Summary: The legend of the dragon stretches far over the Kingdom of Oa’hule and the people are bound to the sacrifices the beast demands in order to secure their safety. Prince Mark grows tired of this constant sacrifice, and takes it upon himself to stop the dragon, but it is soon revealed to him the true monsters are closer to home.History is written by the victors, after all.





	Draconis (Unum Maledictus)

 

 

_Magic was a fickle thing, powerful and far reaching, but only for the beasts of the world. They dabbled in dark things, spread their lies and their influence using dirty tricks, and as such carried dark labels. Humans did not hold magic within them naturally, and they had no way of getting it. They fought with silver laced tongues, steel forged swords, and fiery passion, winning any and all battles they needed with their resilience and their righteousness. They did not need to be beasts to spread their power to the corners of the entire world._

_Dragons carried the most magic._

_Large, winged creatures, they could strike fear into the hearts of many and inspire hope in the hearts of few. Wherever they roamed, death was sure to follow, as the legends said._

_But legends could be wrong._

_The Kingdom of Oa’hule’s recent history was written around the legend of a dragon in the nearby hills. A legend stretching back hundreds of years, shared countless times and passed down through the centuries, it constantly changed as it passed through the lips of the people but there was always one thing the same. The dragon was a terrible creature, with wings of black death and a glare so powerful it could steal your soul in seconds. Living so close to the Kingdom, it demanded sacrifices to keep the general public safe, and no one was above using it as a scare tactic._

_“Behave or you’ll be the next sacrifice to the dragon.”_

_It was enough to send chills down the spine of even the most hardened adult, for the truth rang clear in those words. Criminals were the first to be used in the sacrifice pool, but the general population would follow if there was no one for the Council and the King to use._

_Everyone wanted the threat of the dragon to end, but no one knew how to do it, except maybe, the dragon himself._

_History is written by the victor of the battles after all._

–

Ever since he had drawn his first breath, Mark had been fed stories of the ritual of the dragon. It was the biggest celebration in the Kingdom, apart from the Coronation of the new King or the birth of a new heir to the throne, and it was something that the royal family was destined to continue for the foreseeable future. Mark himself could be in charge of it one day, his father had whispered to him as Mark had stared with wide eyes at the books and scrolls depicting the history of the ritual. He needed to be fully prepared.

As he grew older, Mark was not as enthralled by the ritual as everyone else seemed to be. Parties, celebrations of life and dedications to the family of the chosen victim to placate them seemed in very poor taste to him, and his mind was constantly working to find a different way out of this deal with the dragon his Kingdom seemed to have. Disease and famine never seemed to touch their lands, and many said it was because the dragon had blessed them because of their sacrifice, but that was a little too difficult to swallow. And yet, whenever he tried to argue, his father, his older brother and the Council would shoot down his terms, citing that the wrath of the dragon was too much to incite. So Mark held his tongue and played happy, all the while planning behind the scenes and trying to disrupt and delay the ritual year on year.

Eventually, he began to refuse to do the rituals. Mark was rarely allowed to leave the castle as punishment for his refusal, but his friends fed back to him that many people were rallying behind his idea and refusal of the rituals, and unrest began to grow. His father let it happen for now, because there were enough criminals for them to use, and the people did not rally behind the freedom of the hardened criminals after all.

But it was soon too good to last.

Crime was low in the Kingdom, because of the threat of becoming a sacrifice, and soon, the criminals ran out. That was the true test of the people, or their unrest at being sacrificed, and Mark watched from his tower in the castle as they fell in line again. Though they wanted to be free of the overhanging threat of the dragon, the threat was enough for them to fold and allow the sacrifices to continue.

It was too much for Mark when the name withdrawn from the pool of citizens was a child, too young to understand what it meant when the King called their name across the castle courtyard, or why their parents had burst into tears. He couldn’t let this pass, and he had a feeling the Council was making an example of him and the citizens by choosing someone so innocent to send to the dragon. Whatever their motivation, he was not about to let a small child be the next victim of this terrible ritual, and as his father called for the child to be brought to the stage, Mark stepped forward himself.

“I will be the sacrifice this year.” He called out, and the entire gathering went deathly silent.

Until his father exploded. He was shouting, the council was arguing, the child’s parents were crying with happiness but their words of thanks were slowly being drowned out as the King grabbed Mark and tried to get him to reconsider. Anything but this. And Mark merely stared at him. He had spent too long looking at one citizen after another take the walk to the dragon’s ritual chamber, was sick of watching it happen, and his studies into the ritual of the dragon gave him acute knowledge of all the legal loopholes. One such loophole allowed for a volunteer to take a sacrifice’s official place, and enough was enough. Too many people over the centuries had died to keep them safe, Mark was done letting it happen.

As a prince his duty was to protect his people, not expect them to lay down their lives for him. And he said so, and watched his father’s face turned beet red in anger at the implication.

No arguments could be made. Mark had made his choice, and while his father and the Council retired to try and overturn Mark’s decision, the prince met his closest friends in the dead of night on the edge of the city for one final goodbye.

“Please take of everyone.” Mark whispered as they all hugged each other tightly in a hot group hug. Amy, Tyler, Ethan and Kathryn didn’t want to let go, but they allowed Mark to pull back slightly to speak again. “And please make sure father doesn’t send anyone after me.” He added, looking directly at his brother, Thomas, standing just outside the hugging circle, waiting for his chance to hug Mark alone.

“I’ll do my best.” He agreed.

Mark shifted the pack he had gathered together onto his back and broke free of the comfort of his friend’s arms.

“Are you sure about this Mark?” Tyler asked. As one of his closest friends, and one of the trainers of the royal guard and the princes themselves, Tyler did not want to lose Mark to the dragon, and he had made his disagreement with the decision extremely well known, but he also knew Mark was not to be dissuaded. Resigning himself to his friend’s fate had been hard, but Tyler supported him.   
“You don’t have to do this.”

“I’ve never been so unsure.” Mark laughed weakly, clapping Tyler on the shoulder, “Honestly I’m terrified but…a child will die if I don’t do this. And I can’t…people have suffered enough. I’m going to put a stop to this ritual, and if it’s the last thing I have to do with my life then…so be it.”

The speech didn’t sit right with his friends, but they swallowed their arguments. Mark had heard them, he understood, but nothing was stopping him from following this through.

“Be careful.” Thomas said as calmly as he could, stepping forward through Mark’s friends and drawing his brother into a hug. “I…just have a bad feeling about all of this.”

“I know.” Mark whispered, “It almost feels as if this entire thing has been planned. I’ve definitely caused a stir without even meaning to, and it nearly destroyed the balance here. I’m sorry Thomas.”

“You’ve always been a trouble maker.” Thomas chuckled, but the laugh was mirthless and his eyes were shining with tears as he reached up to ruffle Mark’s hair. “I’m gonna miss that.”

Smiling, Mark hugged him tightly again, and then turned to face the wilderness. The pack he was carrying was already lying heavy on his shoulders, filled with as much gold as he could carry to barter with the dragon. With one final hug to his friends, Mark reached out his hand to take the leash of his dog Chica from Amy.

“She’ll protect you.” Amy murmured, kissing Mark’s cheek gently, “Take care of her.”

“I will.” Mark promised, “I will.”

There was nothing else to be said as Mark took his first steps away from the city, and yet a thousand things burning the tips of their tongues as they watched their friend walk away. Mark had never been outside of the city boundaries before, even on diplomatic missions, and the countryside was beautiful even in the dark. He had an inkling of where he was going, and he struck out in that direction, Chica dutifully bounding alongside him.

When he turned back to give one final wave, the darkness of the night had swallowed up his friends. With a heavy heart, Mark turned back to his path and walked on.

**Author's Note:**

> My [ Tumblr ](https://tyrannysaurusfloof.tumblr.com/)


End file.
